Kicking off the Midnight Riders 18th Season

18 Years Strong!

Wow, has it really been 18 years already? It seems like only yesterday we were cheering on our new boys in blue at their very first match! So much has changed and we’re excited for our 18th year to be the best so far! With that in mind, we’ve got all manner of goings-on in the works as we head into the Revs 2013 season, so let’s get into it!

Quick note: Please let us know right away if you are having any trouble accessing the message boards. These will be critical to our planning and discussion of the below items as well as other preparations for this season, so you definitely want to make sure you’re part of the process and connected to all the latest info.

ANNUAL SCARF CONTEST

Seriously, who cares what we’re doing this season if we don’t look awesomer than everyone else in the stadium? Fortunately, we have so many awesome scarf ideas this year that we need YOUR vote to pick one! If you’re a 2012 member, we need your help to vote for this year’s scarf. The first round elimination voting is already open and only open until Mon Jan 14th, so head to the Merchandise message board to cast your vote today!

THE “BETTER LATE THAN NEVER” HOLIDAY PARTY

Join us Friday Jan 18th upstairs at the Banshee as we enjoy a few pints, reflect on the past year, and look forward to the 2013 season. There will be some light food provided and a video recap of the 2012 season.

2013 MEMBERSHIPS

Memberships for 2013 are now available in the shop! Renew for yourself and get your friends to join us this year! Particularly for renewing members, the sooner the better to ensure we have you all set up in time to vote at the 2013 General Meeting in February and to make sure you have access to the message boards as we start planning everything for the upcoming seasons

Please note that in the past, the details and differences between Individual and Family memberships weren’t completely clear, so we’ve taken extra effort to clarify the options and benefits of each. We’ll also be discussing these details at the General Meeting and we’ll be voting on a clarification measure with regards to Family Memberships at the general meeting, so we encourage you to review the Membership details.

2013 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

As we do each year, we’ll be gathering at Doyle’s in Jamaica Plain on February 17th to review the 2012 season, discuss initiatives for next season and to elect officers and leadership for 2013. Your voting status is based on your membership, so while you can sign up at the meeting, if you sign up in advance we’ll have your ballot ready and you can pick up your membership materials (parking passes, member cards, info, scarf pre-orders, etc) at the meeting so you’ll be sure to have them before the first game.

This meeting is also what makes us so strong as a group, because every one of our members has a voice and a vote and how we grow each year depends entirely on who our members are, so we will continue to be the only true group representative of all our supporters every year. If you haven’t joined us for an annual meeting before, you don’t want to miss this, so mark your calendars and we’ll see you then!

NOMINATIONS FOR 2013 OFFICERS

In order to be elected to an Executive or At-Large Board position, you need to be nominated by another member. Nominations for officers and leadership for the 2013 season are now open. Who is the best man or woman for each job? You tell us! Nominate your candidates today so we make sure to have our very best leaders this season. Any member in good standing can be nominated for an At-Large Board position, but only members who have served on the At-Large Board for at least one season are eligible to be nominated for Executive Board positions. More information on the positions and their roles and responsibilities and details on the nomination process can be found here.

Please note: We will be voting at the General Meeting to revise the position of Assistant Membership Secretary to a new Social Media Chair position as part of our effort to keep our group modern and current. The details page has the full info on the new role, but these two roles will be one changing role, so nominations for these two positions are one and the same. If the motion passes at the meeting, the person elected will be the Social Media Chair, otherwise of the motion does not pass the same elected person would hold the already established Assistant Membership Secretary position. We’ll have more details on this coming out prior to the meeting and will discuss further at the meeting prior to vote.

INDEPENDENT SUPPORTERS COUNCIL (ISC)

On Jan 24th the Midnight Riders will be sending President Fran Harrington as their representative to the Independent Supporters Council (ISC) meeting in Kansas City. The ISC meets in order to identify and promote the needs of soccer supporters. As the organization is comprised primarily of supporters from Major League Soccer markets; that is the main focus of the discussions. Supporters groups from all levels of professional soccer such as the NASL and USL Pro are welcomed and encouraged to join the ISC. If you have any questions rf topics you would like to see covered please head to the thread on the message board here.